Orochimaru

It had been over a month since his last conversation with Kabuto Yakushi. In that time, he'd visited the orphanage several times but hadn't run into Kabuto once.

He had reason to suspect that Kabuto had run away without finishing his research on the Hashirama Cells.

Meanwhile, Team 7 had taken on more missions than they had in the original story. The Chunin Ninja Exams were drawing closer, and the upcoming Konoha Crush Plan heralded a turbulent time.

As Mufeng Uchiha was training Blood Style in the nearby woods, Kakashi Hatake suddenly appeared in front of him.

"Konoha Mufeng, there's a C-rank mission. The client specifically requested you. You'll be escorting them to a small ninja village. It's a bit of a long journey, but you can refuse if you want."

Kakashi Hatake had appeared out of nowhere in front of Mufeng Uchiha as he trained. Finally. Mufeng immediately realized this was the opportunity Kabuto Yakushi had mentioned.

"I'll take it. By the way, Kakashi-sensei, what have the others been up to lately?"

After their mission in the Land of Waves, Sasuke Uchiha had challenged Mufeng Uchiha. Sasuke had lost badly that night, without even getting a chance to fight back.

The other two had witnessed the whole thing, too. It seemed to have gotten to them; Mufeng hadn't seen either of them around lately.

"Naruto's training with a powerful ninja. Sasuke's training with me, and Sakura's studying Medical Ninjutsu so she won't hold the team back anymore. Sasuke's waiting for me, so I'll leave the client to you."

Naruto Uzumaki had met Jiraiya earlier than in the original story. Perhaps because of me, they were all working harder than they had before.

Mufeng Uchiha went to meet the client. A child, with white hair and a sickly appearance—he was none other than Kimimaro.

"Come with me."

Kimimaro had disguised himself as a young master from a well-off family. The two left Konoha, and only after making sure no one was watching did Kimimaro speak with relief.

"Lord Orochimaru is waiting for you in Otogakure. Keep up with me."

As soon as he finished speaking, Kimimaro sped up without a second thought for Mufeng Uchiha behind him. His only task was to lead the way.

No matter how much Kimimaro increased his speed, Mufeng Uchiha kept pace behind him. Kimimaro had the Shikotsumyaku and had already awakened his Cursed Seal, which had greatly enhanced his physical abilities.

Even an ordinary Chunin might not have been able to keep up with him. Mufeng Uchiha looked completely at ease. No wonder Lord Orochimaru couldn't stop thinking about him; he was a surviving member of the prestigious Uchiha Clan, after all.

The two quickly reached a cave in a remote mountain forest. Judging by its furnishings, it looked nothing like a ninja village and more like a laboratory.

Just as he'd expected, Orochimaru didn't trust him completely. The place he'd brought him to wasn't Otogakure at all. Cultivation tanks filled with various experimental subjects stood all around them.

There were ninjas from Konoha, Kirigakure, Kumogakure, Sunagakure, and Iwagakure. It seemed Orochimaru had even placed them together as a control group.

All of them had been injected with Hashirama Cells. Their bodies had developed White Zetsu traits to varying degrees. It seemed Orochimaru had nearly finished studying the material I'd given him.

"Mufeng, we've only spoken through Kabuto Yakushi until now. It's good to finally meet you."

Deep in the damp, shadowy cave, Orochimaru licked the corner of his mouth with his long tongue. His slit pupils gleamed as he stared at Mufeng Uchiha, greed practically spilling from his eyes.

"Don't look at me like that. Whatever Itachi Uchiha can do, I can do just as well."

Mufeng Uchiha raised his head, meeting Orochimaru's slit pupils with his own crimson eyes. For a moment, Orochimaru thought the boy before him was even more terrifying than Itachi Uchiha.

The next instant, Orochimaru was caught in the Sharingan Genjutsu. His already fragile soul couldn't withstand it, and he Shed Skin on the spot.

"What a wonderful greeting, Mufeng. You're a rare partner, and I won't make a move against you. After all, we still have plenty of things to work on together."

From the moment Mufeng Uchiha had exposed Kabuto Yakushi's identity and offered Orochimaru White Zetsu as a bargaining chip, White Zetsu—a creation of the Hashirama Cells—had proved to be a perfect test subject.

The White Zetsu material had led to a major breakthrough in his research on the Hashirama Cells. He was now confident he could make them harmless. But reality was far harsher than the ideal.

The subjects in the cultivation tanks all showed White Zetsu traits, yet every one of them was a failure. They had become mindless, walking corpses.

He'd finally reached a conclusion: the physical energy of the Hashirama Cells was too strong, while the subjects' spiritual energy was too weak. The cells had ended up consuming them instead.

"Mufeng, the White Zetsu you gave me was a tremendous help. But you've seen the state of those subjects in the tanks. I've managed to produce an injectable form of the Hashirama Cells, but anyone who receives it will need immense spiritual energy to withstand it."

Orochimaru curled his tongue, his cheeks moving as he worked something around in his mouth. Then he opened it again and extended a long, slender tongue toward Mufeng Uchiha. A dose of Hashirama serum, slick with saliva, rested on it.

"Next time, just hand me the serum. I'll take this one for now."

He now had two doses of Hashirama Cells. They were insurance for him and Sasuke Uchiha. In truth, he'd been holding himself back all along. All he needed was the right opportunity to break through and awaken the Mangekyo.

"What a shame. I was hoping to collect data on how the Hashirama Cells affected you. Mufeng, would you like to see my experiment? I'm very interested in your blood."

Had the news about Blood Style gotten out?

"Sure, but I'll need to watch the whole time. Have you made any progress studying my blood?"

"Mufeng, you never fail to surprise me. Even I have to expend a great deal of spiritual energy to deal with the Chakra in your blood."

What a pity. He'd wanted to use Orochimaru's abilities to extract the Chakra of Asura and Indra from Naruto and Sasuke's bodies. That was the only way he'd have a chance to awaken the Rinnegan.

Orochimaru led Mufeng Uchiha farther into the cave. This section was fairly tidy, with all kinds of experimental equipment, though the setup was still too crude.

"Mufeng, all you need to do is drip your blood into this."

Without hesitation, Mufeng Uchiha cut his palm. His blood dripped into a dish that had already been prepared. As soon as it touched the liquid, it spread rapidly and swallowed the surrounding fluid, like a fish darting into the sea.

Orochimaru was instantly thrilled. He picked up the container and began tinkering with it while Mufeng Uchiha watched in silence. At last, Orochimaru burst into laughter and looked at Mufeng Uchiha with greed gleaming in his eyes.

"Remarkable. Your body harbors unimaginable power, Mufeng Uchiha. Would you be interested in becoming a powerful ninja with several kekkei genkai?"